Devils Workshop

Friday, December 04, 2009

White Chocolate Holiday Bark

I am in full holiday mode now-we bought our Christmas tree last night and did some decorating. This is our first year having our own tree-we usually travel for the holidays, but this year we are staying home. I am excited to start our own traditions. We both have all of our ornaments from when we were kiddies, the tree is random, but in a good way:)

I made a batch of chocolate bark at Halloween and everyone loved it. It is the perfect quick candy for any holiday. I always make the traditional peppermint bark, but this year I branched out and made a sampler platter. I created: cranberry almond bark, pretzel M&M bark, and the classic peppermint bark. It was fun mixing things up.

The white chocolate base goes nicely with all of the flavors. Cranberry and almond are the perfect holiday combination. The pretzel bark tastes like chocolate dipped pretzels, without all of the work. And of course the peppermint bark is delicious and refreshing-everyone loves this stuff!

If you need an easy treat to make for your neighbors, family, and friends-make my holiday bark. Try all three flavors-they are all wonderful!

My dear friend Gaby, from What’s Gaby Cooking?, created a Winter White Chocolate Mix that looks amazing! It is White Chocolate Friday:) Make this sweet snack to munch on during the holidays!

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. (I used my Silpat)

2. Place the white chocolate in a metal bowl. Put the metal bowl over a pot of simmering water. Make sure the bowl does not touch the water. Stir the chocolate frequently with a rubber spatula. When the chocolate is smooth and fully melted, remove the bowl from the heat. Wipe off the bowl if there is any condensation.

3. Let the white chocolate cool for a minute or two. Stir to make sure it doesn't harden. Pour the chocolate onto the baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat. Spread it with a spatula until it is about 3/8 inch thick.

4. Sprinkle the toppings over the white chocolate. I did this in sections-a section for the cranberry almond, a section for the pretzel, M&M, sprinkles, and a section for the candy canes.

5. Let the chocolate cool and harden. I put the pan in the refrigerator. It was ready in about 30-45 minutes.

This looks good and so simple. Your combos get me thinking of different things I could use that I just have a little of but could combine with something else to "stretch" it a bit. Thanks for a good idea!

I already set up our tree (a fake one) with all the trimmings, but I haven't indulged in any real holiday choco-baking yet--despite my aiding the very tempting Godiva Giveaway promotion (which could win two very lucky people a year of chocolate). This white bark looks stupendous, especially with the almond/pretzel combo. I must try it! What brand of chocolate do folks use? I'll probably give Godiva a shot given my current mouth-watering affiliations, but I'm sure the type of choc could make a big difference.

These are so pretty. I don't know how any of this could last very long! I hope you weren't planning on saving these for Christmas. ;-)

I used to travel a lot at Christmas time, so I rarely bought a tree. Other seasons time and money just got in the way of a tree for me. This year I'm so excited to be having one. I'm buying it tomorrow. Yay!

Sounds like you're having lots of holiday fun. We don't put our tree up for another two weeks, so I'll have to stick with my cookie baking ; ) A great selection of bark -- makes for a very nice platter!